Over the next five years, home prices are expected to appreciate 3.22% per year on average and to grow by 17.3% cumulatively, according to Pulsenomics’ most recent Home Price Expectation Survey.

So, what does this mean for homeowners and their equity position?

As an example, let’s assume a young couple purchased and closed on a $250,000 home in January. If we look at only the projected increase in the price of that home, how much equity will they earn over the next 5 years?

Since the experts predict that home prices will increase by 4.4% this year alone, the young homeowners will have gained $11,000 in equity in just one year.

Over a five-year period, their equity will increase by nearly $43,000! This figure does not even take into account their monthly principal mortgage payments. In many cases, home equity is one of the largest portions of a family’s overall net worth.

Bottom Line

Not only is homeownership something to be proud of, but it also offers you and your family the ability to build equity you can borrow against in the future. If you are ready and willing to buy, find out if you are able to today!

Even observers who have been cutting their targets remain relatively upbeat about the stock market’s 2019 prospects.

PHOTO: SHANNON STAPLETON/REUTERS

January historically strong period for stocks

Friday’s (Jan 4 , 2019) big rally in stocks helped erase the worst two-day start to a year since 2000. For investors who track seasonal patterns in markets, it also pointed major indexes in the right direction.

Not only is January typically a strong month for stocks—a phenomenon known as the January effect, which some analysts attribute to investors buying new shares after tax-loss selling in December—historical data suggests this month is poised to be even better than normal. That’s because it comes in the third year of the presidential election cycle, which some analysts say is typically the best for equities.

In pre-election years since 1950, the S&P 500 has delivered its best performance in January, posting an average climb of 3.9% for the month, according to the Stock Trader’s Almanac. Part of the reason: incumbents typically implement new policies, or push for lower taxes ahead of a presidential election in an effort to boost the U.S. economy, some analysts said. Jan 7, 2018, Jessica Menton, WSJ

Aging Boomers and Rich Millennials…fueling the rise of the mortgage-free Seattle homeowner

If you’re among the thousands struggling with the high cost of housing in Seattle, here’s a statistic that might make you wince.

Census data show that in 2016, more than one in four Seattle homeowners owned their home outright, free from any mortgage debt. This lucky segment of Seattle households has grown at a remarkably fast pace. There were about 31,000 owner-occupied households with no mortgage in 2010. By 2016, the most recent data available, the number had jumped to almost 42,000 a 36% increase. That’s nearly seven times faster than the rate of growth for homeowners carrying a mortgage.

The data show that Seattle has also outpaced most other big cities. Among the 50 most populous U.S. cities, we rank fifth for the increase in mortgage-free homeowners since 2010.

One factor, certainly, is the massive baby boomer generation, now aging into retirement. This group makes up a big chunk of Seattle homeowners — more than 40% belong to this generation.

Interestingly, there were around 2,400 Seattle homeowners under the age of 35 who owned their home outright in 2016. That number more than doubled from 2010, which makes millennials the fastest growing age group of mortgage-free homeowners.

Maybe they’re successful young tech entrepreneurs — or perhaps they just come from wealth. The data, unfortunately, doesn’t reveal how they were able to pay for their home in full.

Gene Balk – FYI Guy, Seattle TImes, Aug 24, 2018

]]>https://sarahjullion.com/2018/11/rise-of-the-mortgage-free-seattle-homeowner/feed/0Staged to Sellhttps://sarahjullion.com/2018/10/staged-to-sell/
https://sarahjullion.com/2018/10/staged-to-sell/#respondWed, 17 Oct 2018 23:26:13 +0000http://sarahjullion.com/?p=10808What value does staging bring to your selling process? To do or not to do…

The typical home-selling schedule goes like this: A home hits the market early in the workweek. Over the next few days, interested home shoppers start stopping by the house and inquiring with the listing agent during private tours. There are open houses over the weekend. And then a deadline for everyone to submit their offers a day or two later.

In total, you may have less than a week to decide on the biggest purchase of your life. But it’s even quicker than that: You’ll have just a few days to frantically hire someone to do a pre-inspection — which will cost a few hundred bucks and likely only give you the gist of the problems of the house; visit the house (often multiple times); make sure your lender and agent get to know the listing agent so they know you’re a legit buyer; and put together a detailed offer that includes much more than your bidding price.

In the past two years, the cost of a median house in King County has gone up $185,000.

A family in France will soon be the first in the world to move into a house completely printed and constructed from a 3D printer. The four-bedroom home in Nantes, France, sits at 1,022 square feet, and is a collaboration between the city council, a housing association, and the University of Nantes. Francky Trichet, the council lead on technology and innovation, says he believes the 3D-printed home process will disrupt the construction industry and claims the project’s purpose was to see whether this kind of build could become mainstream for new housing as well as for other communal buildings.

“For 2,000 years, there hasn’t been a change in the paradigm of the construction process. We wanted to sweep this whole construction process away,” Trichet told BBC. “That’s why I’m saying that we’re at the start of a story. We’ve just written, ‘Once upon a time.’”

Finished printing in 54 hours

Printer is forming the walls from the ground up.

The printed home was finished in 54 hours, but four more additional months were needed for contractors to put in things such as windows, doors and the roof. The total building cost of £176,000—around $233,500—makes the construction of the 3D home 20 percent cheaper than a similar home built using more traditional procedures.

“Over aquarter of renters, or11.1 million households, are severely cost burdened, spending at least half their income on rental housing.

These households struggle to save for a rainy day and pay other bills, including groceries and healthcare.

It’s Cheaper to Buy Than Rent

As we have previously mentioned, the results of the latest Rent vs. Buy Report from Trulia shows that homeownership remains cheaper than renting with a traditional 30-year fixed rate mortgage in the 100 largest metro areas in the United States.

The updated numbers show that the range is an average of 6.5% less expensive in San Jose (CA), all the way up to 57% less expensive in Detroit (MI) and 37.4% nationwide!

Know Your Options

Perhaps you have already saved enough to buy your first home. A nationwide survey of about 24,000 renters found that 80% of millennial renters plan to eventually buy a house, but 72% cite affordability as their primary obstacle. Aside from affordability, one in three millennial renters have concerns about their credit scores, and another 53% said that a down payment is an obstacle.

Check exactly how much you need for a down payment… then figure out how long it will take.

Many first-time homebuyers who believe that they need a large down payment may be holding themselves back from their dream homes. As reported before, in many areas of the country, a first-time home buyer can save for a 3% down payment in less than two years. You may have already saved enough!

Bottom Line

Don’t get caught in the trap that so many renters are currently in. If you are ready and willing to buy a home, find out if you are able. Let’s get together to determine if you can qualify for a mortgage now!